


I'm Right Here

by Likesummerrainn



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Dreams, F/M, Spirits, legend of korra era, older toph
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:55:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24966319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Likesummerrainn/pseuds/Likesummerrainn
Summary: She finds him in her dreams, now, and tells him about her day.
Relationships: Toph Beifong/Sokka
Comments: 8
Kudos: 85





	I'm Right Here

It’s been a long time since the space beside her was occupied. She’s grown used to sleeping alone, especially those late nights when she returns, the exhaustion finally catching up with her as she collapses onto her bed. 

It’s too soft, she always thinks. Part of her misses sleeping on dirt, beneath open skies and cool air around her. 

But some nights, those memories come back strong to her. Some nights, they feel real and consume her just as they once did when she was a child. 

Tonight is one of those nights. 

She feels the earth beneath her, her legs dangling off the ledge, the sound of rushing water below her. 

“Finally,” she hears behind her. A shiver runs through her, though she stops herself from showing it. She hears footsteps approaching until they stop beside her. There’s a loud sigh and a slight groan as the spot beside her is occupied. “I was wondering how long I’d have to wait tonight.” 

“Long day,” she says. 

She almost doesn’t recognize her own voice, light and unbothered, free from the weight of her day. She sounds like a different person. She drops her head back and breathes in the air that grows cold around her. She feels a hand, soft and feather light, take hold of hers and she lets herself smile. 

“You say that every time.” It’s whining, and normally she can’t stand it, but tonight she only laughs. 

“I’m here, aren’t I?” she replies. 

A snort, a laugh, and then a sigh. The hand over hers squeezes gently, and something inside her breaks. 

“I’ve missed you,” she mumbles, kicking her legs back and forth. 

“I know.” She sighs, his hand tugs on hers. “Tell me what’s going on.” 

Her shoulders relax and she lets herself lie down. He lies down beside her, too. 

“The girls,” she starts, quietly. “They…” 

She doesn’t know how to finish. She doesn’t even know where to start with them, and she thinks back to her day of seeing their fighting go from bad to worse and she wonders what there’s left for her to say. 

“Lin likes to play avatar,” she says, laughing at the thought. “She and Su pretend to be the avatar and save the world. It ended with Lin earthbending for the first time.” 

He laughs and it’s a sound that puts her completely at ease. It has been so long since she’s heard it that something seizes in her chest and threatens to burst. 

“Just like her mother, huh?” he says.

“She’s excited. Almost destroyed the house, but she’s excited.” 

“I’m proud of her.” 

Her heart swells as he speaks. It’s the way things should have been, the two of them sitting like this, talking about the kids-- _ their _ kids. 

But she continues, if only to keep herself from breaking down. 

“Su started a rock collection,” she says, instead. “She brings them home and describes them to me.” 

“A noble hobby,” he replies. 

“Her favorite is one that she says glows in the moonlight. Makes it look like the night sky. Like a piece of the night sky fell and landed in her hand.” 

“Well, it’s happened before,” he says, bumping her shoulder.

She can’t feel him, not really, but she knows he’s there beside her. She knows his shoulders brushing against hers. Knows the way his hand feels in hers, lacing their fingers together, she can even feel the warmth of his breath on her. 

“She’s just like you,” she whispers, small tears falling down her cheek. 

“Sometimes I see her,” he says, bringing her hand up, still in his. She swears she can feel his lips on the back of her hand and she shudders. “In dreams, sometimes we find ourselves in the same place. She looks just like you, you know. They both do. I don’t see Lin as often, but Su...almost every night.” 

She can’t help herself. She lets herself cry, and lets this spirit pull her closer as she does. 

“She talks to me, tells me about her day, too. She loves you and Lin so much.” 

“I…” 

She stops. 

The thought is stuck in her throat. 

“I can’t do it,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper. 

He kisses her temple, 

“You can,” he murmurs. “No one else but you can.” 

“Not without you.” 

It is the first time she admits it. The thought has weighed heavy in her heart for years, yet she has never spoken it. She’s never had anyone to tell it to. But now, laying beside him, she tells him what she has held on to for years. 

“I never wanted to do it without you. We…” she stops, her breath catching in her throat. “We were supposed to build a family together.” 

He does not say anything. 

“We were supposed to get old and cranky together,” she continues. 

“You already had a headstart on that,” he tells her, and she can detect the teasing in his voice. She smiles. 

“It’s not fair,” she says. 

“I know.” 

“I just got you back. And you’re gone again. It’s not  _ fair _ .” 

“I’m sorry.” 

“I…”

She can’t finish. She’s crying now, turning her head towards him. 

“I need you, she finally says. 

“I’m here,” he says, softly, pushing her hair aside. “I am always here.” 

“They need you, too,” she says. 

“And they have me. They always find me. A trick I’m sure they got from their mother,” he says, teasing. 

She lets herself smile. She tries to squeeze his hand, but it comes up empty. She tries to touch him, to hold him, but never can. 

It’s a miracle, then, that he can hold her at all. 

But she doesn’t care. She has him in these moments of peace, and she will take whatever the spirit world will give her. 

“I miss you, Sokka,” she whispers. 

“I miss you, too, Toph,” he whispers back. 

“Don’t leave,” she mumbles, her body growing heavier, exhaustion washing over her. 

“I’m right here,” he says. 

It’s morning again when she wakes up. She’s in her bed, holding a pillow tight to her chest. Her throat is dry and her eyes are heavy. The ache in her chest comes back when she realizes she’s alone again. 

Outside her room, she can hear the girls already up. 

She turns on her back and keeps her eyes closed, one arm spread out on the other side of the bed. 

It’s warm. 

She smiles to herself. 

Sokka has never lied to her before. 

He’s right there, always, just like he promised her. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hate the writers for doing this to me, making me so invested in a ship that is completely doomed. But I love them, still.


End file.
